Obama’s new security strategy just rhetoric

US President Barack Obama laid out a new national security strategy that is not to be limited to military might and addresses security, prosperity, values and maintaining international order.

"It’s representing a new era, not a new strategy, but rather new rhetoric,” said Adam Kokesh, an Iraq war veteran and a candidate for Congress in New Mexico.

Kokesh said the newly announced strategy is not really new. He argues that the plan continues the same approach to military conflict carried out by former US President George W. Bush.

“Going after the problems of terrorism with a hammer rather than a scalpel, which is what this strategy recommends, seems to continue,” said Kokesh.

Obama’s security agenda calls for improved American diplomacy, development aid and intelligence gathering in an effort to make the use of military action less likely. This comes after Obama increased the number of American troops on the ground in Afghanistan and made plans for an offensive this summer.

Kokesh would like to see the ideas in the new strategy implemented, but said he thinks it is merely more of the same rhetoric Obama campaigned on and has not yet live up to, citing the president's continuation of Bush-era military policies.

“Clearly the current strategy isn’t working. The strategy document calls for that more precise strategy, but nothing Obama is doing really reflects that, including his bowing to world leaders, really sacrificing America’s power when he’s representing us internationally and continuing the Bush policy with surges and throwing more troops at problems where we are propping up the corrupt Karzai government now in Afghanistan,” said Kokesh.

Kokesh argues that a mere change in wording and a change in rhetoric do not change the situation if actions remain the same.

The security challenges posed by Iran and North Korea and have not changed significantly under Obama's policies. Kokesh said this is because the US has not taken a hard-line approach and is indecisive in its foreign policy.

“Every time he [Obama] faces any kind of confrontation it seems that he just runs away,” said Kokesh.